Official 2018 Recruiting Updates Thread: Links, Tweets, Videos, Stories, Rumors, etc.

Donate To GopherHole
OddStack said:
Yet, we are ahead of only 1 school ranked in the top 35 (Cal) in player rating. With our player rating, we are 9th in the B1G ahead of Indiana, Rutgers, Purdue, Northwestern, and Illinois.
Click to expand...

PJ's class is very good. He has done an outstanding job. He has done, on paper, better than we have done in years. However, some will still feel the need to make it out to be more than it is - even if it contradicts all the rating aspects they normally promote. Today: Player rankings don't matter, it is all about Team Rankings - and what they are today.

Me? I am just still hoping for #31.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

If the Gophers are winning 9 or 10 games in a couple years, no one - outside of a handful of hard-cores on a message board - will care what the class was ranked.

Once they sign a LOI, it's all about coaching and skill development.

If the class is ranked #30 instead of #35, does that somehow provide extra validation for the program, the coaching staff, and the fans? it's just a number.

To quote Wren/the Walrus: Big Ten Wins! (and Prexy K........)
 

OddStack said:
IMO, yes. Furthermore, this staff has not convinced me that they can/will develop talent either. I hope I am wrong; time will give the answer.
Click to expand...

Five players drafted in the last two drafts including the #5 pick in the last draft doesn't cut it for you huh?
 

Gophers7NatTitlesBadgers0 said:
Five players drafted in the last two drafts including the #5 pick in the last draft doesn't cut it for you huh?
Click to expand...

Exactly. What kind of talent development is he expecting to see in less than a year of this staff being here? Considering a most years only about half a dozen MAC players get drafted, I think Fleck has proven he can develop talent.
 

btowngopher said:
Exactly. What kind of talent development is he expecting to see in less than a year of this staff being here? Considering a most years only about half a dozen MAC players get drafted, I think Fleck has proven he can develop talent.
Click to expand...

I guess I'm worried more on the defensive side. I've shown statistics several times that make me question Smith's ability.
 


OddStack said:
I guess I'm worried more on the defensive side. I've shown statistics several times that make me question Smith's ability.
Click to expand...

There weren't a lot of DC's in America that were going to win with the talent we had this last year. We were playing OLBs as your D Ends and hoping they'd hold up to behemoth tackles. Didn't work out. Transfers, suspensions, and injuries decimated the defense from the year before. It was a bare kitchen. Give Smith more time. We'll be better next year with some actual payers who belong on the defensive line.
 







West Fargo Gopher Fan said:
247 must have re-evaluated one or more of our recruits. Our average recruit ranking is up to 85.99 tonight.

https://247sports.com/college/minnesota/Season/2018-Football/Commits
Click to expand...

hungan1 said:
Victor Viramontes went from 0.8831 to 0.8851.
Jason Dickson went from 0.8528 to0.8623.

When I averaged up the ratings on Excel, I actually get I actually get 0.8607 instead of 0.8599.
Click to expand...

It looks like ESPN rated Viramontes (80 - 4*) and Dickson (79 - 3*) (both as top 50 JUCOs). They were listed as JC in place of a rating.

On another ESPN note - we now have five 4* recruits - Dunlap, Reigelsperger, Faalele, Terell Smith, Viramontes.
 

btowngopher said:
Exactly. What kind of talent development is he expecting to see in less than a year of this staff being here? Considering a most years only about half a dozen MAC players get drafted, I think Fleck has proven he can develop talent.
Click to expand...

I agree that one year isn't enough to gauge the development abilities, but the number of players in the NFL is also not a pure gauge. Maryland has always put players into the NFL and some very highly drafted, yet they hire and fire coaches with the best of them. Talent is talent and the NFL will find it.
 

Interesting on other teams in the West and recruiting over the last month.

Northwestern hasn't received a commitment since June
Wisconsin none since October 1st.
Illinois two in the last month, lower 1/2 of their class
Iowa two in the last month including top rated player in their class
Purdue three in the last month
Minnesota four in the last month
Nebraska with a new coach will have a bunch of late commitments.

Not sure how many each school has room for.
 



MaxyJR1 said:
I agree that one year isn't enough to gauge the development abilities, but the number of players in the NFL is also not a pure gauge. Maryland has always put players into the NFL and some very highly drafted, yet they hire and fire coaches with the best of them. Talent is talent and the NFL will find it.
Click to expand...

Maryland recruits better than some may think, some of those good recruits go on to be drafted, and I'm sure they develop some lesser rated guys like all schools do. The NFL will find NFL talent, but it's much more difficult for a MAC coach to find it.
 

MaxyJR1 said:
Interesting on other teams in the West and recruiting over the last month.

Northwestern hasn't received a commitment since June
Wisconsin none since October 1st.
Illinois two in the last month, lower 1/2 of their class
Iowa two in the last month including top rated player in their class
Purdue three in the last month
Minnesota four in the last month
Nebraska with a new coach will have a bunch of late commitments.

Not sure how many each school has room for.
Click to expand...

I did the math earlier for Wisconsin. They have 84 on scholarship right now, with 15 Seniors leaving, that puts them at 69 scholarships. With 19 committed, that puts them at 88 scholarships used. So they need to have at least 3 transfers already to sign all their commits. I haven't looked at how many transfers they have, so they could have room for more, but it seriously depends on transfers.
 

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 

MaxyJR1 said:
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Click to expand...

Looks like we're still in contact with both Palmer and Verdis Brown. Wondering if they our plan B in case we have a couple recruits flip or if we actually have more room to add 2 more players?
 

Pioneer Press: Minnesota’s Mr. Football has yet to make a college choice

Eden Prairie’s Mr. Do-Everything during the 2017 season rose above all other Minnesota high school players to win the Mr. Football award Sunday. But Antonio Montero’s college destination for next year is much less definitive.

“We’ll see how it shakes out. … We’ll see how that goes. … I’ll just have to stay patient and see what else comes,” Montero repeated when discussing his views on opportunities with the Gophers, North Dakota State, Iowa State, Air Force and Illinois.

After playing in the Minnesota Football Showcase for the state’s all-stars at U.S. Bank Stadium on Saturday, Montero made his official visit to the University of Minnesota through Sunday. On Monday, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck had a long visit with Montero at Eden Prairie High School.

“He said he really wants me to be a Gopher,” Montero relayed. “He also wants me to take my other visits, too. … He made it clear to me: They don’t have any more signing class spots, but he said that within the time period that I would be there, he thinks for sure that I’m a scholarship guy. That is not down in writing, but he made it pretty clear.”

With the new early signing period opening next Wednesday, the Gophers currently have 26 recruits for 25 spots in the 2018 class, and changes will be necessary to get down to the 25-player cap. Montero could join as a preferred walk-on during that window, but he envisions waiting until the traditional signing day in February to make a decision.
Montero, a standout linebacker who also played fullback, kicker and punter, has spent his whole childhood in Eden Prairie, but he’s somewhat partisan to the Wisconsin Badgers because his mom, Carrie Montero, went to Madison.

“I was originally a fan (of Wisconsin), but Minnesota being the home state, I’ve always had a connection to them as well, so whenever they play I’m neutral — if I’m being honest,” Montero said of his boyhood fandom.

http://www.twincities.com/2017/12/13/minnesotas-mr-football-has-yet-to-make-a-college-choice/

Go Gophers!!
 

BleedGopher said:
Pioneer Press: Minnesota’s Mr. Football has yet to make a college choice

Eden Prairie’s Mr. Do-Everything during the 2017 season rose above all other Minnesota high school players to win the Mr. Football award Sunday. But Antonio Montero’s college destination for next year is much less definitive.

“We’ll see how it shakes out. … We’ll see how that goes. … I’ll just have to stay patient and see what else comes,” Montero repeated when discussing his views on opportunities with the Gophers, North Dakota State, Iowa State, Air Force and Illinois.

After playing in the Minnesota Football Showcase for the state’s all-stars at U.S. Bank Stadium on Saturday, Montero made his official visit to the University of Minnesota through Sunday. On Monday, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck had a long visit with Montero at Eden Prairie High School.

“He said he really wants me to be a Gopher,” Montero relayed. “He also wants me to take my other visits, too. … He made it clear to me: They don’t have any more signing class spots, but he said that within the time period that I would be there, he thinks for sure that I’m a scholarship guy. That is not down in writing, but he made it pretty clear.”

With the new early signing period opening next Wednesday, the Gophers currently have 26 recruits for 25 spots in the 2018 class, and changes will be necessary to get down to the 25-player cap. Montero could join as a preferred walk-on during that window, but he envisions waiting until the traditional signing day in February to make a decision.
Montero, a standout linebacker who also played fullback, kicker and punter, has spent his whole childhood in Eden Prairie, but he’s somewhat partisan to the Wisconsin Badgers because his mom, Carrie Montero, went to Madison.

“I was originally a fan (of Wisconsin), but Minnesota being the home state, I’ve always had a connection to them as well, so whenever they play I’m neutral — if I’m being honest,” Montero said of his boyhood fandom.

http://www.twincities.com/2017/12/13/minnesotas-mr-football-has-yet-to-make-a-college-choice/

Go Gophers!!
Click to expand...
I'm sure lots of coaches do this, but its nice to see that Fleck is encouraging the recruit to make the decision that is best for them, even if it means going somewhere else.
 


tommypoly said:
Looks like we're still in contact with both Palmer and Verdis Brown. Wondering if they our plan B in case we have a couple recruits flip or if we actually have more room to add 2 more players?
Click to expand...
No room just staying in contact in case a current commit would decide to flip elsewhere.
 

OddStack said:
Yet, we are ahead of only 1 school ranked in the top 35 (Cal) in player rating. With our player rating, we are 9th in the B1G ahead of Indiana, Rutgers, Purdue, Northwestern, and Illinois.
Click to expand...

We are now. Doesn't the player ratings will still be behind them come NSD.

People always bring that up, because supposedly class rankings can only go up as schools fill their classes.....except for Minnesota, which can only drop as they fill their class in the minds of fans.
 

We made the splash screen of 247sports: https://247sports.com/Article/Colle...-Explaining-the-tweaked-25-man-rule-112220845

Early Signing Period Preview: The 25-player rule isn't a biggie

As it stands right now, Minnesota is the only program that heads into this new signing period with over 25 commits, sitting at 26. Every year around National Signing Day, the question arises. How do programs sign more than 25 players when that is the limit put in place for each school? The answer is simple: Early enrollees can count towards the previous class.

Each college program has a compliance department that keeps track of these numbers, as does the NCAA to make sure each school is following the rule. It can get murky, but let's say you counted three early enrollee's towards last year's class. That means you have three extra spots to sign this year, assuming you have the early enrollees to count back.

However, there is a new rule in place where you can’t get an initial counter back. Say a prospect signs on Dec. 20, the date of the Early Signing Period, but fails to meet the academic requirements later to get into school. That young man still counts towards the 25. In the past a school would get that counter back and could just go add a JUCO prospect in June, elevate a greyshirt or even take a high school senior that is still out there unsigned. If that prospect fails to show up under the new rule, a school doesn’t get that back. This new rule — as some have incorrectly feared — does not mean you can't sign over 25 players. You simply need to have wiggle room created via early enrollees, as always — you just can't take too many risks and lose that initial counter.

It shouldn't be a big deal when you have basically 100 scholarships to work with over a four-year span and college football teams are only allowed to carry 85 scholarship players. You shouldn’t have any issues staying full unless you’re a program that consistently runs players off and then makes a lot of risky moves signing kids that won’t qualify.

As it stands right now, Minnesota is the only program that heads into this new signing period with over 25 commits, sitting at 26. They also inked 26 in the 2017 cycle but only took 22 in 2016. They’re going to have room to maneuver and count guys back. Ohio State’s No. 1 ranked recruiting class is up to 21 commits. There will be several schools like the Buckeyes expected to go over 25 by February’s National Signing Day.
 



hungan1 said:
I really love to see Verdi Brown as a converted DT for the Gophers. He certainly has the size. https://247sports.com/player/verdis-brown-92964

Taiyon Palmer is a CB I'd want to. http://https://247sports.com/player/taiyon-palmer-75803

I don't know what their status are. It'll all depend on someone leaving or transferring from Gopher football..
Click to expand...

This has been brought up many many times here and it looks like we need to cover it again. We can sign a max of 26 this class. Having a departure whether it's a transfer, someone just giving up football, etc. does not mean we can sign another guy in this recruiting class. We would have a scholarship for a transfer addition this offseason or that scholarship can be added to the pool for next year's recruiting class but 26 is the max. The only way we could have another '18 commit would be if someone were to decommit.
 

I wanted to share that I had a brief social media chat with gopher recruit Alex Reigelsperger today. I like to send recruits a message via twitter and thanking them for committing. I tweeted a picture of the stadium to him and he responded via private message.

I found him to be very friendly and very excited to be going to school here. Alex is definitely someone I'll be rooting for. He said if I am at the spring game and he will stop by and "Let me know whats up"! :)
 

West Fargo Gopher Fan said:
I wanted to share that I had a brief social media chat with gopher recruit Alex Reigelsperger today. I like to send recruits a message via twitter and thanking them for committing. I tweeted a picture of the stadium to him and he responded via private message.

I found him to be very friendly and very excited to be going to school here. Alex is definitely someone I'll be rooting for. He said if I am at the spring game and he will stop by and "Let me know whats up"! :)
Click to expand...

Guessing you'll be at the Spring game...
 

It honestly feels like PJ is quite literally waking the sleeping Giant here. I liked Mason, Kill, and Claeys was a great X’s and O’s Coach (though game management such as in that Michigan game left something to be desired)... but although I liked those guys there did always seem to be a cap on how far we could rise under each. With Fleck, he has more risk than a Kill, but his ceiling is a National Championship. Fleck is willing to work harder than anyone else, he seems to be recruiting young men that believe in that energy which leads me to believe they are willing to do the same. If you believe your team, work harder than others, and have the tools to be great... you’re looking at a program that can rise to the top. Nothing is guaranteed, but I’ve never been more excited about the future!
 

RatherBeGolfing said:
This has been brought up many many times here and it looks like we need to cover it again. We can sign a max of 26 this class. Having a departure whether it's a transfer, someone just giving up football, etc. does not mean we can sign another guy in this recruiting class. We would have a scholarship for a transfer addition this offseason or that scholarship can be added to the pool for next year's recruiting class but 26 is the max. The only way we could have another '18 commit would be if someone were to decommit.
Click to expand...

Actually if the 247 article Livingat45North quotes is accurate 3 of the 2017 class would be credited to the 2016 class leaving the 2017 class at 23 signees. Thus, if we had further attrition of our current roster (to 58 active scholarship players) we could sign 27 and have 2 be assigned to 2017.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom